Manufacture of footwear



Get. l, 1938. A. F. DONOVAN 2,33164 MANUFACTURE oF FOOTWEAR Filed Dec. 1956 Inventor, .A fred jaz avan Gw @fw @www Patented Oct. 11, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE MANUFACTURE 0F FOOTVAR Application December 1, 1936, Serial No. 113,639

10 Claims.

This invention pertains to the manufacture of footwear, and relates more especially to apparatus useful in the preparation of an inner sole, and in particular to facilitate the assemblage therewith of a shank piece or stiffener. In a copending application of Alfred F. Donovan, Serial No. 107,759 filed October 27, 1936, an improved shoe bottom structure is disclosed and claimed, said bottom structure including an insole proper, a metatarsal pad united to the under surface of the insole, and a shank piece or stiiener having its forward end overlapping the pad.

To insure that all of the advantages attainable by the use of such a pad and shank piece are secured, it is essential, as pointed out in the abovereferred to application, that the forward end of the shank piece be accurately located relatively to the pad. In said application it was suggested that the pad be provided with a transverse slot or recess, and that the forward end of the shank piece be furnished with a. flange and/'or prongs to seat in said recess, thereby to facilitate the assemblage of the shank piece and insole and to make sure that when so assembled they will be accurately related,-assuming of course that the transverse slot in the pad has first been properly located.

The present invention has for its principal object the provision of means for accurately 1ocating and forming such a transverse slot in the metatarsal pad. A further object is to provide adjustable means operative to locate and form the slot at the proper position, regardless of the size of the insole. Further objects are to provide slot-forming and locating means operative to orient the slot properly relatively to the longitudinal axis of the insole, and to provide means for forming a slot having a plurality of spaced, deepened portions or sockets for the reception of prongs or teeth on the forward end of the shank piece.

A further object is to provide means for flattening and compacting the metatarsal pad and for integrating it with the other elements of the insole.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will be pointed out more fully hereinafter in the following more detailed description andby reference to the accompanying drawing, wherein Fig. 1 is a plan view of an insole support provided with insole positioning gauges, and in broken lines indicating an insole (bottom up) disposed upon the support in readiness for the slotforming operation;

tact with the work and just in readiness to form l the slot in the pad;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary View showing the bottom of an insole as it appears after the slotting operation, and in broken lines indicating the location of the die relative to the insole when forming the slot; y

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary section substantially on the line 5"-5 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary section substantially on the line 6-6 of Fig. 4; and

Fig. '7 is a perspective view with the slotted nsole and shank piece separated from each other and showing the elements of the shank which cooperate with the slotin the assembly of the parts.

Referring to the drawing, the numeral I designates the frame of a machine, such as a punch press, of any usual type, in which the present improvements are embodied, such press having the vertically reciprocable plunger 2, which may be operated by power and controlled by a treadle or other suitable means (not shown) common to machines of this general class.

In accordance with the present invention, the frame l is provided with a supporting surface for a removable normally stationary mold 3, having an upper surface 4 designed to receive a molded inner sole. The frame l also supports a heel end gauge 5 designed to slide forwardly and rearwardly in a guideway in the frame. This gauge 5 may be adjusted and held in adjusted position by any suitable means, for example, a screwthreaded shaft 5a provided with a hand wheel by means of which it may be turned. Preferably the gauge 5 is furnished with a recess 'l having a curved rear wall, such recess being designed to receive and to support the heel end of the insole. If desired, a clip 8 may be secured to the upper surface of the gauge 5 so as to overlie the upper surface of the insole and prevent it from I slipping out of the recess. Preferably the gauge 5 is furnished with a pointer or index element 9 which cooperates with a scale I0 on the frame, such scale being graduated and marked to indicate insole sizes.

The machine frame is also preferably furnished with a pair of oppositely disposed spaced side gauges Il and I2 respectively, which may be moved toward and from each other, independently, by means of the screw-threaded shafts I3 and I4 provided with hand wheels I5 and I6 by which the shafts may be turned. These gauges Il and I2 are so disposed as to contact with the lateral edges of the insole at the shank portion of the latter. If desired, index means may be provided for showing the positions of the gauge members Il and I2.

'I'he plunger 2 of the machine is designedto support a die I'I and to move the die toward and from the mold 3 upon which the insole rests. The die Il is detachably secured to the plunger 2 in any suitable manner. The die I'I and the mold 3 are made in rights and lefts to accommodate right and left insoles, and the proper corresponding die and mold are mounted in the machine according to whether right or left insoles are to be slotted.

The die I'l is preferably furnished at its front face with a housing providing a vertical guideway I8 in which slides the stem I9 of an elongate sole-positioning element or index finger 2G. The member i9 tends to move downwardly under the inuence of gravity, but it may rise in response to pressure against its under side. The free end of the finger 2S is preferably tapered, as indicated at 2i (Fig. 4). This member 23 constitutes an index element for cooperation with the usual longitudinally extending rib 22, which is formed upon the under surface of the insole and which is designed to seat within an elongate recess or Cavity in the shank piece. The insole 23 is here disclosed as a composite insole consisting of a body member of leather or other suitable material having a depression 23a in its under side at its ball portion for the reception of a metatarsal pad 24, the under surface of the insole being covered with a reinforcing fabric 24a which extends continuously across the undersurface of the pad, as shown at 24lo (Figs. 4 and 6).

The die Il preferably has a substantially Vflat under surface I'ifL and is furnished with a pair of positioning pins 25 and 23 respectively, each of these pinshaving a shank portion 21 which extends up into a corresponding vertical bore in the die, and which is normally pressed downwardly by a spring 28. Each of the pins 25 and 26 is preferably furnished with Van, elongate pad-contacting surface 2Q and 33 respectively, said surfaces being inclined with respect to each other and designed to contact with the rearwardly converging rear edges 3l and 32 respectively of the metatarsal pad.

The die is also furnished with an indenting blade 33 extending transversely across the die and which is designed to indent the material of the pad and to form therein the transverse slot 34. Preferably the blade 33 is also furnished with a pair of projections er teeth 35 and 35 spaced apart and in the plane of the blade proper and which are designed to form deepened portions or sockets 3l in the bottom of the slot 34.

The shank piece 38, which is more fully described in the above-referred to application, is provided at its forward end with a flange 39 and preferably with a pair of spaced prongs 40, the flange being designed to seat Within the slot 34 while the prongs 43 enter the deeper portions or sockets 31 in the bottomv of the slot.

In using the apparatus above described, and assuming that the operator has first provided the machine with a mold 3 and die I "I, of eitherrright or left contour corresponding to the insole to be operated on, he then places the insole 23 upon the mold 3 (it being understood that the plunger 2 and the die have been elevated) and brings the rear end of the insole against the gauge 5. The latter is then .adjusted by means of its adjusting member a with the assistance of the index and scale, to the proper insole size, thus insuring the location of the insole longitudinally in proper position with reference to the path of movement of the die I1.

'Ihe operator then swings the insole laterally so that the indexing element Z of the die (which, when the die is elevated, is just above the surface of the insole) extends longitudinally of the rib 22 of the insole. At the same time the edges 3l and 32 of the pad are caused to engage the surfaces 29 and 30 respectively of the pins 25 and 26. These pins and the forward surface of the member 23 provide a three-point contact for engagement with the pad, so that the proper location of the insole with reference to the die may thus be very accurately obtained. Having thus positioned the insole by reference to the parts 25, 26 and 20 of the die, the operator may, if desired,

move the gauges I I and i2 so as to hold the insole securely in position as the die descends. The die is now brought down with substantial pressure upon the exposed surface 124b of the pad, thus causing the blade 33 to indent the pad and thereby form the groove or slot 34, while the parts 35 and 35 of the blade concomitantly form the sockets 3l'. At the same time the substantially flat under surface I la of the die tends to compact and atten the material of the pad so asto bring the exposed surface 24b of the latter down flush with the bottom of the insole-at the same time squeezing out any included bubbles of air between the pad and the other elements of,v the insole, so that the pad is lcompacted and caused to adhere very strongly to the body member ofthe insole, it being understood that in the priorassembling of the parts, adhesive is interposed between the insole proper and the pad. During this downward movement of the diev I'I the members 2l), 25 and 26 yield.y upwardly, so that they do not interferewith the proper operation of the blade 33 or of the die itself in slotting and compressingthe pad material.

At the completion of this slotting and compressing operation,. the die is raised and the insole removed from the mold 3. Since, in accordance with the above operation, the slot 34v is formed as a mechanical operation and with the assistance of gauges and positioning elements which bear a very denite relation to the position of the blade 33 and also to the location of the pad on the insole, it is assured that the slot will be in the exact proper location (assuming that the die has been correctly designed) for the reception of the flange 39 and the prongs 40 of the shank member. Thus all that the assembling operator has to do is to place the flange 39 in the slot 34 with the prongs 46 in the sockets 3T to make sure that the shank piece is located with the desired exactness with reference to the pad, and also with reference to its desired position laterally of the insole. l

Whileone desirable embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described by way of example, it is to be understood that thejinvention is not necessarily limited to* this precise embodiment vbut is to be regarded as inclusive of all equivalent constructions such as fall within the scope of ther-appended claims.v Y' H I claim:

1. Apparatus for use in slotting the metatarsal pad of an insole preparatory to assembly of a shank stiiener therewith, said apparatus comprising a support for the insole and a slotting die movable toward and from the support, said die having locating means engageable with the margin of the pad while the die is retracted, thereby to assist the operator in accurately positioning the insole on the support.

2. Apparatus for use in slotting the metatarsal pad of an insole preparatory to assembly of a shank stiiener therewith, said apparatus comprising a support for the insole and a slotting die movable toward and from the support, said die having a pair of yieldable locating members engageable with the margin of the pad at spaced points respectively while the die is retracted, thereby to assist the operator in accurately positioning the insole on the support.

3. Apparatus for use in slotting a metatarsal pad associated with an insole preparatory to assembly of a shank stiiener therewith, said pad having converging edge portions, said apparatus comprising a support for the insole and a slotting die movable toward and from the support, said die having a pair of pad-engaging pins each yieldable vertically, under pressure, and each having an elongate face engageable with the margin of the pad, the elongate faces of the pins converging at substantially the same angle as the edge por, tions of the pad.

4. Apparatus for use in slotting a metatarsal pad associated with an insole preparatory to assembly of a shank stiffener therewith, said apparatus comprising a support for the insole and a slotting die movable toward and from the support, the die having a rearwardly extending index element designed to cooperate with a longitudinally extending rib on the insole, thereby to assist the operator in properly arranging the insole on the support.

5. Apparatus for use in slotting a metatarsal pad associated with an insole preparatory to assembly of a shank stiener therewith, said apparatus comprising a support for the insole and a slotting die movable toward and from the support, the die having spaced pad-engaging members operative to make a three-point contact with the pad while the die is retracted, thereby to assist the operator in accurately positioning the insole on the support.

6. Apparatus for use in slotting the metatarsal pad of an insole preparatory to assembly of a shank stiffener therewith, said apparatus comprising a support for the insole and a slotting die movable toward and from the support, the die having an elongate rearwardly directed index linger, said nger being designed to register with a longitudinally extending element at the under surface of the insole and being yieldably movable in response to upward pressure.

7. Apparatus for use in slotting the metatarsal pad of an insole preparatory to assembly of a shank stiffener therewith, said apparatus comprising a support for the insole and a slotting die movable toward and from the support, the die having spaced locating members operative, when the die is retracted, to engage the margin of the pad at three separated points, said locating members being yieldable upwardly under pressure.

8. Apparatus for use in slotting the metatarsal pad of an insole preparatory to assembly of a shank stiiener therewith, said apparatus com-4 prising a support for the insole and a slotting die movable toward and from the support, locating means carried by the diedesigned to assist the operator in properly arranging the insole upon the support, said locating means comprising a rearwardly extending index element designed to cooperate with a longitudinally extending rib on the insole, the die having an indenting blade operative, as the die descends, to indent the. substance of the pad and form a transverse slot therein, said blade comprising a plurality of projecting teeth operative to indent the pad more deeply than the body of the blade, thereby to provide spaced sockets at'the bottom of the slot.

9. Apparatus for use in slotting the metatarsal pad of an insole preparatory to assembly of a shank stiffener therewith, said apparatus comprising a support for the insole and a slotting die movable toward and from the support, locating means carried vby the die designed and arranged to assist the operator in properly arranging the insole upon the support, said locating means. comprising an elongate rearwardly directed index finger designed to cooperate with a longitudinally extending element at the under surface of the insole and being yieldably movable'in response to upward pressure, the die having indenting means operative to form a transversely extending indentation or slot inthe pad and concomitantly to form a plurality of sockets in the bottom of the slot.

10. Apparatus for use in slotting the metatarsal pad of an insole preparatory to assembly of a shank stiffener therewith, said apparatus comprising a support for the insole and a slotting die movable toward and from the support, the die having a substantially flat under surface for engagement with the pad, .thereby to compact the material of the pad as the die descends, upwardly yieldable locating means carried by the die designed and arranged to assist the operator in properly placing the insole upon the support,'said locating means being engageable with the margin of the pad when the die is retracted, the die also the substance of the pad.

ALFRED F. DONOVAN. 

